Histological and ultrastructural analysis of biopsy specimens of donor heart under conditions of extended period of pharmaco-cold ischaemia

Abstract

At the histological and ultramicroscopic level, compare biopsy specimens of donor heart under standard (up to 240 min) and extended (more than 240 min) periods of pharmaco-cold preservation. Biopsy specimens of the left atrium of donor hearts: group 1 - 8 samples after transportation with pharmaco-cold preservation of the graft in Bretschneider solution (Dr. Franz Köhler Chemie GmbH, Germany) up to 240 min, (Me 140), and group 2 - 5 samples after an extended pharmaco-cold period (more than 240 min; Me 375) were examined using light microscopy of semi-thin sections and transmission electron microscopy, followed by stereological and statistical analysis. A comparative study of the myocardium of donor hearts revealed stereotypical dystrophic changes in cardiomyocytes. Semi-thin sections demonstrated a mosaic pattern of myocardial parenchyma in both groups, caused by contracture and less pronounced lytic changes in myocytes, which were accompanied by stromal edema without statistically significant differences according to stereological studies. Ultrathin sections of the perinuclear zones of cardiomyocytes visualized reduction and focal damage to myofibrils and mitochondria in combination with pronounced autophagy; at the same time, with a shorter duration of the pharmaco-cold period, the stereological indicators of cardiomyocyte organelles indicated a relatively better supply of myofibrils with mitochondria. The results obtained suggest a sufficiently high degree of preservation of the tissue and ultrastructural organization of donor hearts with prolonged (more than 240 min) pharmaco-cold ischemia to restore adequate cardiac activity after heart transplantation.